Walk for Water

A FUNDRAISER TO BRING CLEAN WATER TO COMMUNITIES IN NEED

For the past five yeras, Portland Global initiatives has raised funds to contribute to water improvement projects in Honduras and throughout the developing world. All proceeds of the Walk for Water will go toward the cause.

Walk for Water 2013 Completed Project: El Ojochal, Honduras

Funds raised through the 2013 Walk for Water, in partnership with Global Brigades, helped bring the first clean water system to a community of over 300 people in southern Honduras.

Walk for Water Timeline

2014 Walk for Water

For 2014, PGI tried something a little different and held a Community Festival along with the traditional Walk for Water. Portland Roasting Coffee generously donated their headquarters as a venue and a great time was had by all. There were live bands, carnival games for the kids, and a stellar beer garden from the fine folks at Laurelwood Brewery. The event was a great success!

With funds raised from the Walk as well as our Ski for Water event, PGI was able to support 2 water projects in conjunction with Global Brigades. The community of El Ocote, in central Honduras, is currently receiving and updated water storage tank along with water connections to each of the 55 homes in the community. Los Hatillos is another community in Honduras, this one with about 150 homes. This project will begin in December of 2014 and will result in a full scale water system providing each home with clean and safe water. These two communities will be forever changed through the support of all of those who came out to join in our events.

2013 Walk for Water

We are proud to support multiple projects for the 2013 year.

We are an initial major donor for the Papua New Guinea water and sanitation project. Engineers conducted a study of 32 schools and 3 community centers. 2 schools are being used as Early Start Schools to test the project with the eventual goal of serving all of the studied schools and community centers. This project will ultimately serve over 40,000 throughout the region. Work has begun with this project, and the 2 pilot schools are just about to receive their new Urine Diversion Dehydration Toilets. Still to come is a full hygiene and sanitation curriculum to share with all local area schools.

We also once again partnered with Global Brigades to assist in the completion of two new community water projects, in the communities of El Ojochal and El Junquillo. El Ojochal is a community of over 300 people located in Southern Honduras. This community has never had a full scale water system, leaving residents responsible for digging their own wells and transporting their own water. Through diligent work from both the community and other Global Brigade volunteers, their water system was completed and began serving the whole community on February 27, 2014. The community of El Junquillo is also located in Southern Honduras. With a population of around 850 people, they faced many of the same concerns as the community of El Ojochal - personally dug wells that often run dry coupled with long distances between wells and housing. A full water system was designed and assembled, and as of the last week of May 2014, the whole community of El Junquillo now has water!

2012 Walk for Water

We partnered with World Vision in 2012 to support their WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene) project with funds raised from the 4th annual Walk for Water. WASH was started in 2011 and is a five year program slated to end in 2016. The program “aims to achieve a target of 90 percent access to safe water supply and 86 percent access to improved sanitation” in all areas selected by the World Vision organization. This will be achieved by drilling over 30 wells, rehabilitating 136 non-functioning wells drilled by other agencies, training over 180,000 communities on sanitation and maintaining current water access points. In addition, the program focuses on improving sanitation and hygiene facilities throughout the selected region with community teams (with specific focus on women) being trained and educated on the importance of proper hygiene and sanitation.

2011 Walk for Water

In 2011, with funds raised through the Walk for Water fundraising event, we completed a four-part water well construction project in conjunction with non-profit group Water for All. With the help of the Malawian government, four schools were selected as areas with the greatest need. Using local materials, clean water wells were dug, solar powered pumps were installed, and storage tanks erected. These tanks not only dispense the water, but also include visual instructions on proper hygiene for the children using them. Well #1 – Chimbewa School: Located in southern Malawi, Chimbewa School is a school for 594 students, 47% of them female. In a community of 1,500 the students, faculty and admin, and the surrounding residences are greatly benefited by the addition of this well. Well #2 – Goliati School: Also in southern malawi is Goliati School. Goliati is a larger school with 2,280 students and 22 staff members. Over 50% of these students are female. Including the community surrounding the school, 5,047 people are affected by the addition of this well. Well #3 – Lomola School: Lomola School serves 1,963 students and has a staff of 27. 47% percent of the students are female. Over 1,500 people are directly benefitted by this well. Well #4: Mwitere School: The Mwitere school, also located in southern Malawi, serves 1,084 students and has a staff of 13. Females make up 55% of the students. With a large community nearby, this project benefits about 3000 people.

2010 Walk for Water

In 2010, the Temeke Primary School in Tanzania gained access to clean drinking water after funds were raised in Portland during the 2010 Walk for Water in conjunction with UN World Water Day. The primary school’s hand pump broke several years ago, and since then more than 1600 children have had to bring water with them to school—often walking up to 3 hours a day just to get water. In partnership with Water for All and Portland Global Initiatives, we completed a deep solar water well that operates around the clock. Attendance is now up at the school and they even have enough water to grow a vegetable garden.

2009 Walk for Water

Walkers from the inaugural 2009 event funded construction by Water For All for two pumps near schools in rural Kenya. With the funds raised, Water For All will install a Sun Pump that will serve about 1,600 people at two schools, a vocational training centre and a center for the deaf. A sun pump powered by solar energy now produces between 8 to 30 thousand litres of water per day, providing water for an estimated 1,000 people in a school and community center. A fun pump doubles as a merry-go-round to bring water to about 2,500 people. As children play and spin the merry-go-round they pump water from a well below. Each pump is powered by three 160 watt solar panels and comes with a solar electric submersible pump, storage tank and two taps. The system can pump water all day and excess water is stored in an overhead tank. Project locations are identified by expressed needs and selected through community input with technology of best fit.